Search optimization is perhaps the primary reason people seem to be moving toward blog use at a business level, but it's just one aspect. I view the SEO benefits of blogging as a by-product of a really great communications technology. Would we still blog if there was no search engine optimization benefits for doing so? Most businesses would. If you're not one of them, you need to rethink your business blogging strategy, and as you formulate a strategy, make sure you consider all the benefits and reasons for doing so. The business requirements that blogs address include elements of customer and business communications that have been largely absent since the Web became an important medium ten years ago. Some of the first companies to blog—Macromedia for example—did so because they provided a frictionless method for connecting with customers at a personal level. While pay-per-click programs are very useful in a specific context (i.e., a tactical acquisition of traffic for example), a blogsite allows you to establish trust, credibility, and thought leadership. When discovered on the Internet, these attributes help you snag interviews, establish brand awareness, and create connections and business opportunities that pay-per-click programs cannot begin to address. Here are some other things that you can use a weblog for: - Expert advisory system
- Customer relationships
- Media relations
- Internal collaboration
- Documentation support
- Knowledge management
- Requirements management
- Idea management
Many of these ideas require security and a permissions model (which Blogsites support). Make sure you consider all the requirements when using blogs for internal business purposes. | 
